


Deep Sea Rising

by orphan_account



Series: Deep Sea Rising [1]
Category: Splatoon
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-02-28 15:35:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18759313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: A re-telling of Splatoon 1's Hero Mode and Octo Expansion. Kaz and the New Squidbeak Splatoon venture out to save the Great Zapfish, but along the way, Kaz finds out the truth behind Octarian society and makes a few strange friends. But the New Squidbeak Splatoon's story is just beginning!





	1. Act Valley

**Author's Note:**

> Some characters were based off a friend's OCs. Thanks for letting me use them! (This story was originally published as four different stories, but I've since condensed them into one story!)

The familiar chimes of Inkopolis News echoed throughout the plaza, ringing loud and clear.

Its two hosts, the eccentric Callie, dressed in pink with long black tentacles, and the mellow Marie, donning green with short gray tentacles, quickly took their positions, as the display above their booth quickly lit up with the news.

“It’s Inkopolis News time!” Callie exclaimed.

“Splat-tasti--” Marie was cut off.

“OHMYGOSH.”

“What is it, Callie? We’re supposed to be announcing the stages for this rotation.”

“The Great Zapfish! It’s been stolen!”

“Stolen?!” Marie looked shocked.

“Gone! It might have something to do with that UFO sighting from last night!” An image of a strange flying saucer popped up behind the two casters.

“I can’t believe someone would do this!” Callie shouted.

“I can’t believe it took us that long to figure it out...”

“Whatever the case may be, we can only hope that it will come back soon!”

“Yep. Anyways, here are the current Regular Battle stages...”

From the streets of the plaza was Kaz, who had just watched the news.

_ The Great Zapfish...?! Stolen?! _ They shared the surprise and shock of the newscasters.  _ That’s the city’s whole power source! If we don’t get it back soon, we’re done for! _

Kaz observed the pandemonium surrounding them. Inklings running back and forth, scrambling with panic. Out of the corner of their eye, they spotted another Inkling heading down a manhole located by the Battle Lobby.

_ I’ve never seen that there before...I should go check it out. _

They followed the squid, and looked down with intrigue. Hopping down with caution, they were greeted with a group of unfamiliar faces - and some kinda familiar ones - in a vast area, dubbed Octo Valley. It was rocky and mountainous, coincidentally a tall mountain stood somewhat nearby.

There were five other Inklings down there, two of them being eerily similar to the Squid Sisters from the news - except they weren’t wearing their sparkly dresses - they were wearing much more casual-looking wear - and sunglasses and masks and hats. It wasn’t quite certain if they were Callie and Marie, but they had a suspicion, intensified by their pink and green colors.

Kaz didn’t look all out of place - they wore their pink tentacles in a ponytail, alongside their pink top and black skirt. They were joined by one menacingly tall squid, who had short, aqua-marine tentacles, and wore what looked like dark-colored gym wear. She was pretty thin and muscular, giving her the appearance of a bodybuilder - one that was really, really mean and scary - Kaz couldn’t pinpoint if she was  _ actually _ mean or scary, but she certainly gave off the vibe.

One of the other ones with them was a little...rounder, to say the least. She had a wider build than the previous one, and kept her sky-blue tentacles decently long, but nothing special. She was wearing a dark-green pilot jacket, and she kept her eyes hidden behind a pair of aviators.

The last one seemed considerably friendlier than the other two, at least at first glance. Her tentacles were purple, and she kept them shoulder-length. Paired with that was a wide smile, and she was just about Kaz’s height, too. Kaz felt something warm towards her, although they were certain it wasn’t love.

The other two introduced themselves as Agents 1 (pink) and 2 (green).

“Who are you?” asked Agent 2.

“K-Kaz. My name’s Kaz.” They fidgeted with their skirt nervously.

“Welcome to the team, Kaz!” The big, sky-colored Inkling tackled them in for a hug, introducing herself as Sakura.

“Team...?”

The purple squid chuckled. “It’s too late to turn back now, anyhow,” she patted them on the head. “My name’s Cierra, and that’s Aqua, over there.” She pointed at the scary-looking one, who at this point was glaring at the assembly.

“Welcome to the New Squidbeak Splatoon, Agent 6,” Agent 2 explained. “We think we’ve located the Great Zapfish, and we’re hoping you can help us.”

“Why do you need help...?” Kaz asked the question, albeit warily.

“We’re going against the Octarians, who have quite a few tricks up their sleeve. We don’t want to risk going alone - strength in numbers, yadda yadda,” Agent 2 rambled.

_ Same sarcasm as Marie, that’s for sure... _ Kaz thought.  _ Also, Octarians? I’ve read about them, might as well use this as my opportunity to get up close. _

“You really want  _ us _ to do it?” Cierra asked.

“You’re who showed up, so we don’t really have anyone else. Will you help?”

“Well, if anyone can do it, we can!” Cierra was fired up, her inquisitive flame being replaced with one of passion and excitement. Sakura cheered along with her, and Aqua simply snarled.

“Perfect! We start today!” Agent 1 threw some outfits at the group - all safety-green jackets, although Aqua and Sakura got black ones that looked a bit thicker.

_ What have I been roped into? _ Kaz thought to themselves, while zipping up their new work gear. The rest of the group continued getting ready, and after about ten minutes they all seemed ready and equipped with the proper gear and Hero Shot guns.

“Alright, our first mission starts now. We’ve got about thirty-one Zapfish to save before we get to the big, ‘great’ one, so let’s go get number one!” Agent 1 cheerily explained, and the two agents led them to a strange-looking kettle.

“...this is just a kettle,” Sakura stated. Aqua didn’t look amused at all, and Kaz and Cierra looked perplexed.

“Maybe to the naked eye, but it’s actually a teleportation device. Just follow me.” Agent 2 jumped into it, and Agent 1 followed.

Kaz sighed. “Might as well...” They followed them, and soon the rest of the group did too.

They ended up in a cold-looking area filled with machinery, a very unsettling vibe.

“Alright, before we head in, here’s the gist:” Agent 2 debriefed them. “There’s a ton of Octoling soldiers guarding the Zapfish here. Take out the Octolings, get the Zapfish. One, two, done. Does that make sense?”

The group all nodded.

“Good. Let’s go.”

They moved forward, and were very soon jumped by the soldiers. They seemed similar enough to the Inklings, although they covered their eyes with goggles, and their dark-pink tentacles were covered in suction cups.

Kaz froze in place. The other five had started ripping into their opposition, but the pink one was too hesitant, watching as the rest of the team did their work.

“Quit slacking, Kaz!” Sakura shouted, before tackling an Octoling into the ground. Although they knew they needed to help the group, they couldn’t bring themselves to do it. They seemed...too similar to Inklings to harm.

_ I can’t hurt them...I can’t do it. That’s too much to ask, for me... _

From a ledge a bit away, another Octoling watched on. This one wasn’t quite like the others, though - she had a dash of yellow in her tentacles, compared to the soldiers’ dark-pink. Instead of the combat goggles, she wore a much more traditional pair of glasses. To top it all off, she was wearing a pair of decently-sized headphones. She was (hopefully) out of sight of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, but she kept her eye on the one that was shaking, the pink one. Luck, however, was against her, as the pink one locked eyes with her. She dipped back into the darkness.

_ Who was that...? _ Kaz was mystified. However, as much as they would’ve loved to have wondered what had just happened, they had to help their team out. They gripped their gun tighter, and reluctantly made their way into the fray.

They took out a few enemies of their own, and soon the squad had cleared the area of any immediate threat. Sakura found and broke the Zapfish free, claiming it for Inkopolis once more.

“We did it!” She cheered. The morale was high, and they were happy to have claimed victory.

“Great work! Let’s get out of here, and rescue a few more. I know a few more we can quickly grab before the end of the day - we have to be timely.” Agent 2 led the team back to the Octo Valley.

They went through a few more missions, rescuing a few more Zapfish. The girl from earlier had stood back and spectated every mission so far, watching on at every turn.

The day ended, the gang went home, and night fell. While everyone else was asleep, Kaz quietly put their gear on, grabbed their gun, and a camera, and snuck over to the Octo Valley in hopes of exploring a bit.

Despite being a war zone, it was strangely peaceful. The air was cool and calm, and the lights of Octarian structures and architecture illuminated it just a tad. However, there was one light that shone brighter than the rest - it seemed much closer than the somewhat distant designs, and appeared to be moving. Out of curiosity, Kaz decided to investigate. Gripping their Hero Shot tight, they carefully and cautiously maneuvered around the rocky terrain. After about twenty minutes of climbing and walking, they found themselves tired - and directly in the light.

“It’s...you.” The light came from a flashlight, which was being held and controlled by none other than the yellow Octoling from earlier. “I...didn’t expect to see you out here. It’s late.”

“Yeah, I know.” Kaz was confused.  _ Shouldn’t she be attacking me? Why isn’t she...? _ As confused as they were, they were happy to have seen her. “I’m glad I was able to bump into you regardless.”

“And...why is that?” The girl asked, with caution in her voice.

“I saw you, earlier. I wanted to know what that was about, and...I guess I sorta just wanted to talk?”

The Octoling blushed a bit. “I did learn Inklish for a reason, I’m...glad I can use it. I’d be happy to talk to you...”

It had never once occurred to Kaz that the Octarian didn’t natively speak their langauge, but it was nevertheless welcome.

“...but we can’t talk here. Come, follow me.” She led Kaz around the terrain, before finding a safe and open area. She gripped their hand, and then led them into a super-jump.

They ended up on top of the mountain, decorated with machines.

“Welcome to Mount Nantai. It’s my hangout, if you will.” Kaz looked around in awe. “Oh, I never even told you my name, did I?”  
“No, you didn’t, but...well, I didn’t either.”

The Octoling giggled. “My name’s Amber. Yours?”

“Kaz.”

“Glad that’s out of the way.” She smiled. “Anyways.”

There was an awkward pause of silence, until Amber broke it.

“...you didn’t attack me.”

“Wh-what...?” Kaz was caught off-guard.

“Down in the Valley. A few moments ago. And when you saw me back on your mission. And you hesitated to hurt the other ones, too.”

“Well...yeah...you didn’t hurt me, you did nothing to me, so why would I hurt you? And besides, as for the Octoling soldiers...I don’t think they’re trying to hurt us. I remember reading a while ago that they were being mind-controlled, but I don’t remember where.”

Amber smiled. “I’m glad we’re on the same page. I can tell you’ve done a bit of research on your own.”

“Yeah, a bit, but I just told you about all I know.” Kaz blushed. “I’ve heard they rarely think a thought for themselves, according to my books...”

“Mhm! Octavio - our king - uses his strange music to control the minds of every Octarian who hears it. Some of us - like me - broke free of it, though.”

_ That makes sense. She did talk to me, and not hurt me... _ Kaz thought some more.  _ Also, her eyes...aren’t the same as other Octarians...regardless, I’m glad I was right. The Octolings are innocent. _

“Anyways, the view is nice up here, isn’t it?” Amber gripped Kaz’s hand again, this time as more of a comforting gesture than anything.

“Y-yeah, it is. I haven’t seen anything like it.”

“This is where we go to listen to Inkling music. Up here. That’s what these machines are, radios. We can listen to something new, something...fresh. You know?”

Kaz nodded.

“It’s how we keep ourselves....free. And not just another gear in the war machine - our escape.”

“Can you guys not just leave?”

“Most Octarians, even those who aren’t controlled, choose to stay. I’d love to get out of here myself, but...I’ve always got someone to answer to.”

That last part confused Kaz, but they went with it.

“So...for me. Carry out your mission, Kaz. Take down Octavio, for us. Don’t let any Octarian stand in your way.”

“But...you’re Octarian...!”

Amber sighed, sadly. “I know. But it brings us one step closer to our freedom.”

She removed her headphones, and then gave them to Kaz. “Take these. As a reminder. I’ve got to get back home before Touko wakes up, but...I believe in you, Kaz. Please...set us free.”

And with that, the Octoling had jumped home, leaving Kaz alone on Nantai.

_ That was strange... _ They thought. Admiring the view, they continued to think.  _ One step closer...this is what she wants, right? She wants us to succeed? _

They pondered over it, the experience seeming surreal. They needed to help her, and shortly thereafter, they made up their mind to keep up the fight. Kaz grew internally frustrated with DJ Octavio. They wanted to save Amber, first and foremost, but it didn’t seem fair to the Octarians to keep them trapped they way he did.

They poked around the headphones, a little button sticking out on the side. They pressed it, and static came out, but after a few seconds, the static transformed into the familiar tunes of the Squid Sisters.

_ City of Color...?  _ Kaz quickly came to the conclusion that this set of headphones was tuned into an Inkopolis radio station.

_ She must’ve used these to override Octavio’s music... _

But that revelation brought with it immense panic.

_ What’s she using to block it out now?! _

Kaz sighed.  _ She’ll be fine. She gave them to me for a reason, so she must have a backup plan. _

The pink cephalopod looked down from the mountain, one more time. They took a few pictures of the Octarian world, before regretting missing their chance to get a picture of Amber.

_ It’s late...I should get back home so I can rest. _

Kaz super-jumped back to Octo Valley, and then made their way home, putting the headphones gently on the nightstand and passing out in their bed.

The sun came up the next day, and by 9:00 AM sharp, the four cephalopods were ready to tackle the valley once again. The newfound spirit was radiating from Kaz; even Aqua noticed.

“Good to see the pathetic weakling finally realizes how much of a waste of space these Octarian scum are,” she chuckled, with a venom tongue.

Kaz snarled. “Just the opposite,” they fired back. “I’m doing this to help them.”

Aqua’s tone sharpened. “What is there to save in these dumb, mindless pawns?”

Kaz posed themselves for a fight. “People, just like you and me.”

“Can you two please calm down?” Cierra intervened. “We don’t have time for this.”

“She’s right, you know,” Agent 2 interjected. “The Great Zapfish is our primary concern, let’s not worry about...whatever this is, until we’re done.”

The squad right back down to their jobs, clearing the Octarian bases that felt more like obstacle courses than headquarters. Luckily, Kaz was already quite confident in their ability to battle the Octarians, and soon they had rescued a few more Zapfish.

As they emerged from their seventh kettle, the New Squidbeak Splatoon got word of a new mission.

“Okay, so as it turns out,” Agent 1 explained, “there’s actually a whole defense of Elite Octarians close to here. We should probably take them out, before getting to anything else; we don’t want them causing any more trouble.”

“Elite Octarians are super strong and super smart - they’ll take you out in seconds,” Agent 2 added. “Stay alert, and watch each others’ backs.” She motioned for the group to follow her, as they entered another kettle and found themselves face-to-face with these soldiers. They all charged straight on into battle, these Octolings putting up a much better fight than any of the enemies they had previously battled.

Kaz was fighting an Octoling noticeably shorter than the rest. This wasn’t this one’s only out-of-place feature - her tentacles were faintly red, compared to the rest of the Elite’s black, and her goggles were a different shade, implying differently-colored eyes.

“What’s up with your eyes...?” Kaz asked themselves during a fight, expecting nothing but violence and silence from their opposition. This was not what they got.

“How the hell did you manage to see them?” The Octoling backed away warily, lowering her weapon. Out of respect, Kaz did the same.

“The shade of your lenses. They’re different.”

“Surprised you noticed.” The Octoling fidgeted a bit, before putting their weapon down on the ground. Kaz met this decision by mirroring it. “It means that I’m doing this of my own accord, not under control of that stupid music.” There was a taste of bitterness in her voice, like she begrudged the music and the society that - perhaps, at one point - had kept her held down.

“That explains Amber’s eyes too...” Kaz muttered.

“Oh, you met her? She just got put into the correction facility, from what I heard.”

“Correction?!”

“Yep. Someone caught her trying to block out the mind-control music - again. They locked her away while they ‘re-adjust’ her, whatever that means. Probably just the same basic torture they use for conditioning.”

“...” Kaz looked saddened. The girl who had given them something resembling a purpose was gone, hidden away, and probably being tortured.

The battle around them raged on, as a strange sort of bubble that distorted space and time surrounded the conversing rivals.

“She’ll be fine. It’s not her first time. I don’t know her personally, but I’ve had...a few run-ins, with rebel groups. Plus, I hear it from the higher-ups all the time.” The Octoling paused. “Oh, by the way - the name’s Tako. You?”

“...Kaz.”

“Well, it’s good to me--” Tako stopped mid-sentence. “Wait wait wait. Hold on one second.” She started looking over Kaz, inspecting them. “Pink tentacles, skirt, average height...you match. You’re the one Amber trusts.”

“What is that supposed to mean...?”

“Listen, kid. Amber doesn’t trust  _ anyone _ . So for her to trust you? She must see something. You match the description of the squid she was out with last night, and you seem to know her already. Let me guess, she’s asking you to help her find the call to freedom?”

“Well...yeah. She is.”

“That damned girl doesn’t want to quit, does she?” Tako sighed, pacing around in a circle.

Kaz sprung a question that was burning into their mind. “If you have a free spirit, why don’t you want to leave?”

The short Octoling froze in place, her face turning somber.

“Already tried. Twice.”

“And what happened?”

“They caught me, both times, and subjected me to the worst shit you can imagine. Haven’t tried since, and I’m starting to doubt it’ll ever happen.”

Kaz let their emotions get the best of them, and they instinctively went in for a hug, ignoring the onlooking Inklings, who had finished their work.

“You’ll get out of here,” they said quietly. “I’ll make sure of it.”

No one understood the situation, and they couldn’t hear the words being exchanged. They put their weapons down? They were  _ hugging _ ?

“...thank you.” Tako broke the hug, a faint smile on her face. “Keep the gun, kid. You’ll need it.”

She picked up the Octo Shot on the ground, and then tossed it at Kaz, before super-jumping away without another word.

“What the hell was that?!” Aqua looked ready to pounce on them.

“What I already told you; I’m trying to save them!” Kaz gripped their new Octo Shot tightly. “They’re not just...heartless creatures, you know!”

“That title belongs to Aqua,” Cierra giggled. The tall demon-squid looked furious, but Sakura was able to calm her down.

“Regardless of...whatever that was, let’s just grab the Zapfish and head out.” Marie took the Zapfish, and they departed once more.

For the rest of the day, Kaz opted to use the Octo Shot that Tako gave them, in place of the Hero Shot. They continued collecting Zapfish, although the only thing on the pink squid’s mind was the encounter with Tako.

_ This gun, the headphones...they gave up all they had for this...I can’t let them down. _

A photographer turned revolutionaire, the squid continued to assist their team. While they weren’t their star by any means, they did their best, put in their fair share of work, they had ended the day with seventeen Zapfish total, which was significant progress. The team met back up at the base of Octo Valley, tired from their days’ work.

“We’ll see you tomorrow, guys!” Callie chimed. “Thank you for the help!~♪” She and Marie went off on their ways, leaving four.

“Come on, fatass. We’re leaving too.” Aqua grabbed Sakura by the collar, before dragging her along for a super-jump.

“Hey, Kaz.” Cierra stayed back with the Inkling. “Can we talk for a bit?”  
“Y-yeah, sure.” Kaz, admittedly, had no idea where this was going, but they agreed to at least entertain the idea.

“Cool. Come back to my place, and I’ll make us a quick bite. I’m starving, and I’ll bet you are too...”

“Can’t say I’m not,” Kaz chuckled.

“Then follow me.”

Cierra led the squid to her house, a small apartment not too far off from the Moray Towers.

“Please, make yourself comfortable! I’ll cook something up, just hang tight!” There was a warm comfort in her voice, a relaxing change from the emotional and physical stresses of missions in the Octo Valley.

_ Whatever she’s cooking smells really good...she must be a good cook. _

Twenty or so minutes had passed, and the purple squid had emerged from the kitchen.

“Dinner’s ready!~” She motioned to Kaz to follow her in, and they sat down at a small table.

“Th-thank you,” Kaz blushed a bit. “It...smells really good, and looks the part too.”

Cierra beamed. “Thank you! It’s just a quick recipe I learned a while ago. They’re not at all that healthy, but they’re super tasty - and easy to make...” The two giggled a bit, before happily biting into their meals, finishing them in short time.

“You should open a restaurant.”

“Can’t say I haven’t considered it, but I’m not sure if it’s for me. But if you like it, I’ll think about testing the waters.” The girl blushed, before turning to a more serious face. “Anyways, I wanted you here for a reason, so that leads me into my first question. What were you and that Octoling doing earlier?”

Luckily for Kaz, this was exactly the question they had prepared themselves for and expected.

“They need help, Cierra.”

“Help? With what?”

“Freedom. They’re stuck against their will, thanks to their king’s mind-control stuff.”

Cierra pondered for a moment. “If they’re being mind-controlled, how did that one talk to you?”

“That’s a valid question,” Kaz responded, “and I can answer it. It seems that a few of them were able to sort of...break free of the control, like the one I talked to, but they can’t quite leave...”

Cierra got up from her seat, and started pacing, contemplating the information she just received.

“Why do you want to help them? Aren’t they...well, against us?”

“Their leader is, not them. They’re just doing what Octavio tells them. The two I met were nothing but friendly - they even learned Inklish, so I could talk to them just fine.”

The girl thought some more.  _ Friendly Octarians? That one did give her gun to Kaz...and Kaz seems confident that this is the right thing to do... _

“...I’ll help you.”

Kaz was taken aback. “Wh-what? What do you mean...?”

“I’ll help you save them. You’ve convinced me it’s worth it.”

The pink squid got up and gave Cierra a hug. “We’ve got this,” they said assuringly. “We’ll get the Great Zapfish, and then we can focus on saving the Octolings.”

Cierra returned the embrace. “Sounds like a plan. Now, you go get some rest, so we can do our missions tomorrow.”

“They said their goodbyes, and Kaz super-jumped home. After taking a short nap, they made their way back to Mount Nantai in the midst of the night. They tuned into the radio from the headphones Amber had gifted them, and simply relaxed, letting their mind wander off, unsuspecting of the revolution that would begin in this very spot.

The next day, the four met up at the Valley once again, where they outlined their day, which consisted of the same general rhythm as the past few days - obstacles, Octolings, Zapfish. There were a few encounters with some larger, mechanized Octarians - called Octoweapons - but they were quickly taken care of. By the end of the day they had twenty-seven Zapfish, which was all of them. After making quick work of their missions, they all joined at the base of the valley.

“We’ll calculate where the Zapfish point to,” Marie told them. “They all use the Great Zapfish as their central power, so we should be able to use these Zapfish to locate it. We should have the results by tomorrow, so you guys get some rest. We’ve got a big day ahead of us.” The squad, as such, disbanded for the day, heading home to prepare themselves, and the next day came, ridden with anxiety, nerves, and excitement, as the New Squidbeak Splatoon prepared to take on their largest task yet.

Meeting once more at the Valley, Marie laid out the plans for the day, as she rolled a map open. “Here’s where Octavio is hiding.” She pointed to a small corner, off of the rest of the area. “We storm in, prepare for a huge fight. He’s got a lot of machinery and tech on his side, so he’ll take some time to shut down. Once that’s done, we can lock him up, and then we can free the Great Zapfish. Got it?”

The group unanimously signaled they understood.

“Then let’s do this!~♪” Callie rallied.

The NSS made their way to a kettle, which they had actually found out was on the UFO that was sighted around the time of the Great Zapfish disappearing.

_ That explains a lot... _ Kaz thought.

“This is it. Hold your weapons steady, and be ready to rock this.” Marie entered, Callie and the NSS following. They arrived in a large dome, brightly lit. It seemed to function as a stage.

“There’s the DJ!” Cierra pointed out, holding a Splat Bomb that she was ready to launch at a moment’s notice.

The large Octarian quickly took notice of his intruders. He was in a strange, spherical-looking vehicle, that had metal fists and was covered in even more lights. It even had what looked to be cannons coming out of the front.

“Come to get your Great Zapfish?” He said, starting up his set, spinning some records. “Try all you want, I’ll mix all of you into oblivion!”

“Kaz, look out!” Sakura warned. One of the king’s metal fists had launched out of the machine, and it was locked onto Kaz. They jumped out of the way, the DJ’s attack missing.

Cierra threw the Splat Bomb at the projectile, and it went flying back, knocking Octavio square in the face. “He’s using his fists to attack you! Rally them back!”

King Octavio fired them again, this time for Aqua, who effortlessly sent it flying back, taking yet another hit.

“Alright!” Cierra cheered.

“We can move forward,” Kaz noted. “He’s not blocking the path! Let’s go!”

The four squids pressed onward, now having much more space to work with. Sakura used this space to get a running start, heading straight for the DJ in an attempt to attack him. However, the Octarian caught her, and she struggled to break free.

“Let...me...go!” She squirmed around, trying to free herself. She managed to do it, but not at the expense of the King claiming her right tentacle, sending her onto the ground in pain,

“Ooowwwwww!!” she screamed, as she curled up in a ball, in tears.

“I’ll take care of her,” Callie cried. “You guys fight!”

“Got it!” Marie responded, sending another fist back into Octavio with a well-placed charger shot. “Guys! KILLER WAIL!” She shouted as loud as she could, but it was too late - the wall of ink-covered sound projected from the DJ’s machine had knocked Aqua, Kaz, and Cierra all out of commission.

“Callie, it’s time! We have to do it, now!” Marie slid out of her jacket, fishing out a remote and microphone from the pockets. Callie abandoned Sakura, finding a microphone in her own pockets.

Within moments, radio static filled the room. And then, the music hit.

The Squid Sisters started singing, completely overriding the strange tunes of the DJ. Their weapon of choice? An old folk song, with a modern twist, known for having mystical powers - the Calamari Inkantation.

Kaz, stuck on the ground, grunted. “It’s...now or...never! We...have to do this...!” They mustered the strength to push themselves off the ground. The music...had healed them. Cierra followed, the Inkantation reviving her and her spirit. It found the same power in Aqua, and even Sakura found herself pain-free, ready to fight.

The crowd felt it too. Every Octarian watching the fight felt the song run through their ink. One of those people was Combat Engineer Marina Ida, one of DJ Octavio’s best.

The melody etched into her soul. It unlocked something in her, a sense of freedom. The Squid Sisters’ music had freed Marina from the chains of Octavio’s mind control, and for a brief moment she let herself reflect on her life. She quickly found her spirit free, discontent with how Octarian society was treating her - and with it she found a will to fight her way out of the empire. She watched the fight rage on, but internally she was already plotting her escape route.

“Cierra! He’s firing his subwoofer attack!” Kaz called.

“On it!” The girl quickly parried, leaving Octavio stunned.

“We’ll take care of him!” Sakura and Aqua approached the stunned king, letting their weapons loose.

Marina, watching from the sidelines, knew there was something she could do to help. She slipped out of the audience, and dashed to the control room, where most of Octavio’s Great Octoweapons were operated.

_ Luckily, most of the soldiers and guards are watching the fight. I should be able to get in without much trouble. _

She slipped around, as stealthily as she could. She reached the door she was looking for. Guarded by a single Elite Octoling, she made masterful work, taking them out and making it in.

“Let’s see...just have to find it...” She skimmed over all the labels for every control, before finding just the one she was looking for. “I’m counting on you, Inklings.”

She put in the access code, and shut down Octavio’s war device.

“Octavio’s kit! It’s shutting off!” Kaz watched as the vehicle started to fail.

“Now’s our chance to finish this!” Cierra bolted towards the DJ.

“Get ‘im!” Sakura shouted, charging. Aqua followed.

“Time for one last push!” Kaz kept up the trend, chasing down the Octarian. Soon, they were all in close range, and Cierra gave the command.

“Fire!”

The four let loose, rapidly inking the king.

“Keep going!”

The squid squad kept their weapons laser-focused on their target. In just a few minutes, they were ready for one last blow.

“Alright, Kaz! Finish this!”

_ One more move, and it’s over. _

They started running.

_ One more shot, and we can finish this. _

They got closer, and faster.

_ We’ll save you, Amber. _

“FINAL STRIKE!”

Kaz threw themselves at the enemy, firing point-blank at Octavio with their Octo Shot, and they slammed it into his face, finishing the job.

“Cross-fade...to...blaaaaaack....” The king stammered, as Callie and Marie finished their song, and made quick work of capturing him. The pink Inkling landed safely on the ground, with their team.

“We...did it...!” Kaz sighed, excitedly. “We...actually did it!”

This excitement was shared throughout the team.

“We can take a break now...” Sakura sighed, sitting down to take a break to breathe.

“You lazy piece of shit,” Aqua snarled, kicking Sakura. “Come on, we’re going home.”

“Ow! Do we have to go now? I wanted to celebrate a bit...”

“We’re not hanging around these useless slabs of meat anymore. Come on.” Aqua grabbed Sakura by the collar once again, before super-jumping away.

“Bye guys...!” Sakura shouted, as she flew through the air.

“Aqua’s really mean to her,” Cierra noted.

“Yeah...we should probably check on Sakura sometime,” Kaz replied.

“Well, now that that’s over...we have our own mission to take care of, don’t we Kaz?” The purple Inkling nudged them a bit.

“Yes we do.” They inspected their Octo Shot, making sure it didn’t break. “But...let’s take a break for a bit, maybe? I’m, uh...pretty tired.”

“Mission?” Marie inquired. “What mission?” Ka explained their plan to save the Octolings from Octavio’s control.

“We’ll back you up!~” Callie chimed.

“If you ever need help, the New Squidbeak Splatoon has your back.”

“Thanks, guys. We’ll let you know, for sure.” Kaz smiled.

“You two get home and rest. Callie and I can take care of the rest.” Marie led her cousin off, as Kaz and Cierra headed back to their places to rest. At home, Kaz plopped down on their bed, taking off their hero gear and putting on more comfortable clothes, those being a Chirpy Chips band tee and a plain black skirt.

_ So glad that’s over. Now we can move on to helping Amber and Tako... _

Later that night, Kaz dropped by Mount Nantai, still in their clothes and carrying a bag of crabby cakes that Cierra had dropped off just a little while earlier. It was dark, and they had brought the headphones that Amber gave them, the weapon Tako gave them, and their food. They went to Nantai alone, but found company on the mountain.

“Oh, it’s you again. Hey, Kaz.” There was Amber, smiling.”I see you brought the headphones too...you kept them.”

“Of course I did. What else was I going to do?”

“Turn them in? Break them? Forget about them? Sorry, but I have a hard time trusting people.”

“I figured.”

“Where’d you get that?” She pointed to Kaz’s Octo Shot.

“A solider named Tako gave it to me. She...she wants freedom too.”

Amber seemed happy. “Glad to see I’m not alone...what’s in the bag?”

“Just some snacks. Want some?”

“Sure!” She took one of the cakes, and bit into it, her face lighting up. “That’s so good!”

“I’m glad, eat as many as you want, Amber.” She did just that, eating until she was full and tired. She put her head in Kaz’s lap, her eyes heavily falling. “We’ll get you out of here soon, don’t worry.”

And with that, the yellow Octoling dozed off with a smile.

“Good night, Amber. You’ll be free in no time, I promise.”


	2. Act Surface

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A friend and a familiar engineer make their way to Inkopolis for the first time. But this is only the beginning of a longer tale...

It had been about a year since the New Squidbeak Splatoon had taken down DJ Octavio. With no king to rule them, Octarian society had thrown itself into lockdown mode, securing the Valley significantly. After extensive planning around all of it with Kaz, she finally had a plan to escape. And, with her, a new, yet familiar, accomplice in her task.

“You ready for this, Marina?”

“As ready as I can be,” she replied, her voice sending a lot of mixed signals. There was a bit of sadness, and anxiety, from leaving the home that they had known for so long; and they couldn’t help but worry if something went wrong. But there was also excitement and joy - excitement to be free, excitement for the journey ahead of them. The two Octarians kept their Octarian gear equipped, but their tentacle colors had almost fully turned into different colors - Amber’s yellow, and Marina’s green.

“I just hope the Deep Sea Metro isn’t hard to get to,” Amber commented. “Kaz gave us a good route, but they said they weren’t sure if the metro was blocked off or not.  Plus, the metro station is in all sorts of shambles.”

“It’ll be fine,” Marina assured her. “It won’t be too difficult. The station’s still functional, plus it’s not all that heavily guarded. We can make a good ruckus without any worry.”

“I hope you’re right. Still, that electric-fence-whatever they put in around the area is stupid, it would have made things so much easier.”

They triple-checked their supplies before they departed, making sure they had everything. They were taking their few prized belongings with them, as well as a few snacks just to sustain themselves in case they got stuck anywhere. After they were positive, they put in some earbuds to block out the remnants of Octavio’s music and started on their way, sneaking around Octo Valley.

“The increased security outside of the bunks is super annoying,” Marina whispered.

“I guess they’ve been worried about...well, escapes, after what happened back in that battle.”

“Yeah, but at least your Inkling friend was able to scope around and find an unguarded escape route.” Amber nodded. Kaz and Marina had met just twice on Mount Nantai, and they weren’t very familiar with each other. The pink and yellow cephalopods did most of the work, Marina simply helping out with the execution.

After about an hour of moving, they found their entrance to the subway system. There was no security in sight, and all of the electronics once protecting it seemed broken. The door wasn’t particularly obscured, so it was easy to walk right up to it.

“Dang it, the authorization circuit still works. I’ll have to bypass it,” Marina noted. Amber watched as the taller Octarian worked her magic, messing with some wires and circuit boards, getting the door open. “Aaaand boom. Authorized. After you, madam.” She bowed dramatically, pointing Amber in.

“Thank you, kind miss,” she replied. The two giggled, walking into the metro station.

“It’s so...eery in here. All the vines, broken stuff. Even the metro itself looks like it’s been vandalized to hell and back...”

“Not much different from the bunks, then, is it?” Amber sarcastically jabbed. “You’re right, though - it’s super creepy in here...and cold. Let’s get on that subway.” The girls made their way onto the train, which was empty. Not a soul that they could find.

“Some rumors say the Deep Sea Metro can travel through alternate dimensions,” the yellow Octoling said. “They say time doesn’t exist there.”

“That’s cool,” Marina replied. “But we can explore that later. For now, we just want to head up to Inkopolis.”

Back on the surface, Kaz met with the heads of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, to make sure everything was going smoothly.

“Marie, any update on their status?” The Inkling asked, examining their notes and maps.

“They’re boarded now,” she replied. “We should be able to use the Zapfish thingy we’ve got hooked up here to force it to stop at Inkopolis Station.” The “Zapfish thingy” was actually just a Zapfish hooked up to a lot of wires and some machines, directly connected to Callie’s laptop.  
“Inkopolis Station isn’t even active anymore, according to the directory,” Callie added. “So we had to trick the metro system into thinking it was. It’s a lot harder than it sounds...”

“Are we ready to fire it up?” Kaz inquired, eager to bring the Octolings home.

“Firing the redirect script right now!” Callie exclaimed. With a few clicks and some keystrokes, the signal had been sent to Deep Sea Metro’s mainframe.

Back on the subway, the speakers echoed.

_ <NEXT STOP. INKOPOLIS STATION.> _

“It worked!” Marina cheered. “Get ready to rock!” The Octolings prepared themselves for motion, and soon the metro had started on its way to the surface. Things seemed to be going smoothly - things appeared to be moving, and the destination still seemed to be Inkopolis. But, out of nowhere, the thing stopped abruptly.

“What the hell?!” Amber immediately seemed frustrated.

“I-I’m sure it’s just a bit of malfunction, it’ll be fixed soon,” Marina replied, hoping to keep them calm.  _ At least, I hope it’ll be fixed soon... _

Up on the surface, however, things were not as calm.

“Kaz, you might want to look at this!” Marie called them over, and they showed them the radar. “They’re stuck, and they’re being approached by a group of some...things.” As she explained, some red dots seemed to approach where the metro was stopped, and the two girls showed up right on the metro.

“Hey, Marina? You hear that?” Amber kept as quiet as she could.

“Hear what?” She listened a bit more closely. “Oh, no, please, no. Amber...I think they found us.” The jingles and click-clacks of Elite Octarian armor grew louder and louder, as if it was approaching the group.

“It doesn’t matter,” Amber seemed fired up. “We’ll kick their ass. We’ve made it way too far now just to give up because they found us. We brought our weapons for a reason. Let’s do this.”

And in just a few moments, a group of five Octoling soldiers forced the subway’s door open. Marina and Amber had braced themselves for a fight, gripping their Octo Shots and pointing them at the entryway.

“You two, you two,” their seeming leader said. She was shorter than the others, which was strange, but she was an Elite, so obviously she had something to work with. “Just won’t quit, will you? Amber, you’ve been in correction like a million damned times by this point, won’t you just give up? And Marina, don’t think you’re off the hook for assisting those Inkling scum a year ago.”

_ They know my name...!  _ Amber thought, panicked.

_ They knew it was me...! _ Marina thought, also panicked.

“We’re not afraid to fight,” Amber stated profoundly. “We’re not scared of you.” Truth be told she was a little scared, but her confidence was necessary for maintaining their success.

“Heh. If that’s what you want.” The soldier reached for her Octo Shot, only to find it wasn’t there. But Amber knew she didn’t forget it, and that it wasn’t stolen. She gave hers away, and never got issued a new one.

Marina, meanwhile, took the time to take care of the other Octoling soldiers behind their leader, leaving just the one weapon-less girl.

“Tako.”

All of a sudden, the soldier relaxed immediately, her aggression and cockiness turning more into worry and confusion.

“How...how the hell do you know my name?”  
Amber lowered her weapon. “You don’t have your gun because you gave it away to someone.”

“Who told you this?!”

Marina observed the scene, taking silent note of the situation. Amber had then immediately pieced together the plan. This wasn’t them being attacked, this was Tako’s plan to escape.

“They have my headphones, too.”

And without ever answering her question, the correlation immediately made itself known. Both Tako and Amber had trusted Kaz with saving them, and it became clear what Tako’s intentions were.

“Come with us. We’ll get you up to the surface.”

Tako sighed, her worry turning to joy. “...thank you.”

Shortly after, the metro started up once again, and the three continued on their way to the surface.

“How did you stop the metro anyway?” Marina asked.

“I told it to not move for like...twenty minutes. Just enough to either destroy you or escape with you.” Tako pulled out a small device, which looked a bit like a remote. Marina looked interested, and she fiddled with the thing for a little while. However, after about forty-five minutes, the subway made an announcement.

_ <NOW STOPPING AT INKOPOLIS STATION.> _

“We’re here!” Amber cheered. “We made it, Marina! We’re free!” The Octoling tackled the tall one into a hug, crying tears of joy.

“We actually did it...!” Marina returned the embrace. Tako joined, and no one seemed to mind, as the three celebrated.

“The metro is at the station!” Callie chimed. “There’s...a third person it seems, but they’re here! They should be with us soon!” The small group of three celebrated their mission’s success, as they excitedly awaited the arrival of their new friends.

The three girls walked out of the abandoned Inkopolis Station, more than ready to get to the surface. They made the long trek from the station to the base of Octo Valley, also known as the New Squidbeak Splatoon’s headquarters.

“You two made it!” Kaz gave both Marina and Amber a hug. “I’m so glad you could.”

“‘Sup bitches,” the third Octoling announced. She had delayed her entrance just enough - for dramatic effect, of course.

“Who the shell is that?!” Marie asked.

Kaz looked over. There was Tako, an unexpected guest on the first Octarian escape.

“That’s Tako. Callie, Marie, you guys know her - she gave me her gun, and she was the one you awkwardly watched hug me.” And that description clicked with the Squid Sisters, because they seemed to understand.

“Now we just have to get the first revolution started for real,” Amber stated.

“Get settled in, girls,” Tako said, taking over.

“H-hey! Who put you in charge, Tako?!” Kaz snapped.

“Trust me, kid. It’s gonna take a while to do the impossible.”


	3. Act Metro

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the first wave of Octarian escapes. The crew is ready, and it all goes according to plan - until one loyal fighter strays the path and awakens an evil that stayed dormant for over 10,000 years.

About six months had passed since Amber, Marina, and Tako had escaped Octarian society. Since then, Amber was able to get her own home after living with Kaz, Marina met Pearl and formed Off the Hook, and Tako helped the New Squidbeak Splatoon formulate their rescue plan.

And it felt no sooner the day first three Octolings arrived than the day that this plan would come to fruition and be put into action.

Back at their Octo Valley base once more, Kaz laid out dozens of papers, covered in maps and diagrams of the Deep Sea Metro, of Octarian bunks and facilities, and other various functionalities and locales.

“Here’s the plan. Amber, Marina, and Pearl will head back to the restricted part of the Valley, and gather a group of Octolings to take them onto the metro, but not until Marina shuts down the security systems to make it easier to escape in the future.”

“Will taking out security make the electric fence go away?” Marina asked.

“Unfortunately not. But it will make things a lot easier for more Octolings to freely travel to the surface after the first wave.”

“Understood.”

“Tako, Kaz and I will be on alert if you need backup,” Cierra explained. “Callie and Marie are staying back, running mission control.”

“When do we start?” Amber asked, her eyes filled with excitement.

“Tomorrow,” replied Marie. “We’ve already established contact with a few Octarian rebel groups who are ready to escape, and we’ve got one ready to go tomorrow.”

The group finalized their outline of action, and went to rest and prepare for the next day. Everyone was excited and eager to finally do what Kaz had set out to do a year and a half prior, but little could have been done to prepare for the upcoming complications.

It was mission day. The whole squad woke up early, as they prepared for the task at hand, meeting up in Octo Valley once last time.

“Before we start, Kaz,” Marie set them aside. “I got in touch with the other NSS members. You’ve got them for backup, too - they’re on standby, and they’re ready to jump at the call.”

“Thank you,” Kaz replied.  _ How the hell did she manage to get ahold of Aqua...? _

Soon, the gang was ready.

“Everyone, take your stations! It’s almost go-time!” Callie called. Marina and Amber put on their Octarian gear for one last hurrah, ready to head home for their curtain call. As they were ready, they got interrupted.

“Ayo!”

“Pearl, you’re late!” Marina scolded.

“Sorry, sorry. But I packed some stuff you might want. Check it!” She tossed her bandmate a bag, filled with changes of clothes for all three of them, snacks, alongside some more important things, like Marina’s laptop.

“Whatever you three are doing,” Marie interjected, “it’s time for departure. Good luck!” After some brief good-byes and good-lucks, Off the Hook (ft. Amber) super-jumped to the Inkopolis gate to the Deep Sea Metro.

“We use this to get inside Octo Valley. From there, I’ll find our group, Marie gave me their coordinates. Marina, I’ll need you to take out their security before I can actually get to them, so you focus on taking that offline. Pearl, you guard the subway, in case anyone tries to screw us up.” Amber adjusted her specs. “We only have one chance, so let’s do this!”

They got on the metro, as it took off once more. Not getting too comfortable, they went over the plan one more time, and Marina was ready to send them over to the Valley.

“Pearl, laptop,” she commanded.

“Hey! Why are you always in charge?” the small squid whined.

“Sorry, sorry. Just used to being in command back in Octavio’s army...”

“And in bed,” Amber joked.

“N-no one needed to know that, Amber!” The green Octoling hastily covered her companion’s mouth, her face blushing hard.

“You must speak from experience,” Pearl snickered, digging Marina’s laptop out of her bag.

“Can you two just shut up?!” The poor girl was flustered as hell, the other two laughing at her misery and awkwardness.

“Love you, Marina~” Amber kissed the Octoling, who was still visibly red.

“I love you too, even though you’re a jerk,” Marina pouted. She opened her laptop, and started doing the work to redirect them to Octo Valley.

“You two dorks are adorable together,” Pearl teased. “We should get you on the news, or one of our singles or something.”

“I will happily play on one of your singles.”

“We’re not signing Amber on a single, Pearl.”

“Aww, dammit...”

_ <NOW STOPPING AT OCTO VALLEY STATION.> _

“Time to do this,” Marina said, finalizing her setup.

“Aaand the metro is stopped,” Pearl commentated. “Get out there and do the thing!”  
The two hopped out of the subway, quickly sneaking back into their old home. The girls split up, guns in hand. Amber tracked down her coordinates, and when she found them, she waited for Marina to take down security. The green Octoling had made a mad-dash for the control center, before realizing that while she used to have security clearance, it was highly likely it was revoked.

_ Guess I’ll just have to break in the slightly harder way. _ She pulled a small toolkit out of her pocket on her armor, and she went to it, quickly and efficiently tampering with the defense room’s entrance key, allowing her to slip in with ease. Once she was in, she made quick work of the control center itself, destroying wires and fuses hastily, doing unfixable amounts of damage to the system that had once held her down.

“Defenses are offline,” Kaz buzzed in over their small earpieces. “You two are clear to return to the metro.”

“Understood,” Marina replied, re-tracing her steps to their exit. Amber quickly led the group of Octolings she was saving to the subway, and they had soon reconvened back on the Deep Sea ride once more.

“Right on time, girls,” Pearl noted. “Let’s get these guys up and out of here!”

“We got them on the metro,” Amber buzzed up to the surface.

“Copy that!~” Callie chimed. “Marina, work your magic!”

“On it now,” the Octoling replied, opening up her laptop. But within moments, their entire plan crumbled beneath them. “It’s...it’s not working!” Her voice quickly turned to panic.

_ <NEXT STOP: ERROR 404.> _

“Yo, uh...’Rina? What’s that 404 thingy mean?” Pearl quickly grew concerned with the situation, as did every other thing on the metro.

“A-as far as I know, that’s a ‘not found’ error - it’s trying to take us to a station that doesn’t exist!”

Amber grew visibly more nervous at this news, her voice raising in volume. “Can you stop it or something?! We don’t have the time to be getting stuck somewhere!”

“I’m trying! Nothing is working!”

“Then can you at least send out a distress signal before we vanish?!”

“That, I can do!”

Marina sent out an SOS from her laptop, before the metro sent them away into the unknown.  _ Please, for the sake of Inkopolis, reach the Inklings at the surface...! _ Luckily, her wishes were answered.

“They sent a distress signal from Octo Valley,” Marie shouted. “But they’re not showing up anywhere on the radar!”

“Dammit!” Tako walked over to Marie and slammed her hand down. “Of the one thing that could have possibly gone wrong, it was this?!”

“What happened?!” Cierra asked, her voice quivering, full of concern and frustration.

“The Deep Sea Metro supposedly transcends dimensions,” Tako explained. “That means that it’s on Kamabo’s lines now, so it might be a while before it ever comes out here. We’ll just have to wait until there’s a signal from the metro again, and then track it down that way, and get it back to Inkopolis.”

“So where do we start?” Kaz asked, focused more on fixing the situation than panicking.

“First step - figure out where exactly the metro is and track its movements. I’ll help you out with that, Marie.” Tako walked over to Marie with her sketches and plans and worked with her on re-calibrating the radar and the rest of the systems.

“Kaz, Cierra,” Callie commanded. “You two will head to Inkopolis Station with Aqua and Sakura. Head out A-S-A-P!” The two Inklings nodded, grabbing their guns and super-jumping right to the station, and when they landed they were met by Sakura.

“Hi guys!” She greeted cheerily.

“Hey Sakura!” Cierra smiled back. “Where’s Aqua at?”

“She went off exploring on her own, I don’t know when she’ll be back.”

“Figures,” Kaz muttered. “Oh well. We should be enough to take care of this. Let’s just wait for further instructions from central command.”

Aqua was off on her own adventure. She had no interest in aiding the New Squidbeak Splatoon, instead seeking literally anything else to do. It wasn’t until she stumbled upon what appeared to be an old telephone, hiding along in the far depths of the seemingly giant station. She walked over to it out of sheer curiosity, and whacked the thing. She was not expecting it to do anything,but to her surprise it started making some noise.

<WELCOME TO THE DEEP SEA METRO,> it said. <PROUDLY RUN BY KAMABO CO.>

“The hell? This thing can talk?”

<HERE AT KAMABO, WE’RE STRIVING TO MAKE THE WORLD BETTER.>

Aqua was starting to feel unsettled, which is an achievement in and of itself -  _ nothing _ makes Aqua unsettled. “What do you want, you scrap of metal?!”

<ALLOW ME TO SHOW YOU. ARE YOU READY TO BECOME APART OF SOMETHING BIGGER THAN YOURSELF?>

Just seconds after, glowing green ink oozed out of the box, seeping into Aqua, as she blacked out on the ground.

Back on the Deep Sea, the three girls struggled to find their way out. Marina had tried everything she could, but in the end she just couldn’t get the subway system to listen to her commands. She had accepted temporary defeat, as she simply waited for whatever the train had to do to them next.

_ <NEXT STOP: GIRL POWER STATION.> _

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Pearl asked.

“No idea, but you two stay back. I’ll explore.” Amber seemed confident in herself to do whatever was necessary, and she was determined to get it done. When the thing stopped, she jumped out. She scanned the area, and found nine weapons to choose from, all in their cans. And yet she didn’t opt for any of them, instead keeping her trusty Octo Shot by her side. Beyond those cans was a launchpad, and she warily set herself in it, bracing for impact.

_ <NINETY SECONDS. DEFEND THE ORB. THE TEST STARTS NOW.> _

The intercom boomed, and soon Amber was left on her own. She had no idea what was going on, but she saw the orb in the center of the arena she was left in. After just seconds, one Octoling soldier jumped in on her. It was wielding an Octo Shot, but this Octoling looked different. Their skin was green, and their tentacles blue. They looked just like a regular soldier in the Octarian army, but yet they had these strange traits to them. She quickly took out this one, but it wasn’t the last of her troubles.

The orb in the middle of the square arena was still perfectly intact - no damage yet. It was protected by crates and pillars too, so hopefully it wouldn’t be too difficult to keep it safe. And then, two more soldiers jumped in, one holding a Blaster, and the other a Slosher. Amber took out the Slosher with a Splat Bomb, but the Blaster gave her trouble. A few shots did splash damage to her, none of them hitting her directly. She had to get much closer to this one than she wanted to, but she was able to get them off her back with a few carefully-placed shots to the head.

Up next, two more, this time one had Dualies and the other a Splat Brella. The Brella cornered the yellow Octoling against a wall, as she used a bomb to knock it back, and then finished it off. The Dualies had rolled around past the two though, and started to hit the orb.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Amber took down the Dualies from the corner, defeating them before they even had the chance to retaliate. And then, two more jumped in, ready for battle. “Can I just get a break please?!” Amber sighed, before investigating and preparing for ambush.

These two warriors had different weapons once again, with one holding a Roller and the other an Octobrush. The yellow freedom fighter threw her Octo Shot at the one holding the brush, knocking it out of their hands. She quickly went and retrieved her gun, using it to finish the unarmed Octoling. The Roller had gone right for the orb once again, although it got stuck on the crates, much to its detriment, giving Amber the time she needed to take this one down as well.

A few more Octolings came in, not posing that much trouble. The orb that Amber had to defend was still mostly healthy, and most of the fighters that tried to attack it were taken down pretty quickly. However, an Inkjet had nearly taken the poor girl out, and although she was able to inevitably end the Inkjet’s assault, she didn’t escape unscathed. However, ninety seconds ran out, and the orb was still intact, meaning she accomplished her mission.

_ <TEST PASSED. PLEASE RETURN TO THE METRO.> _

Amber stumbled onto the subway, out of breath and covered in ink. Pearl and Marina made sure she was okay, and after just a few minutes, the subway taking them to a few more stations, with much less hectic tests, albeit still difficult. Certain tasks included, but were not limited to, blasting crates moving on grind rails, replicating a structure, moving a giant 8-ball from one end of an obstacle course to another, and even a course that resembled one of the kettles from her home. But after a few hours, the train had finally stopped taking them to these tests, and instead just rode around.

“No...more tests...” Amber sighed, tired. Marina gave her a hug and suggested they all change into something more comfortable, and there was much agreement. They all changed - Pearl was now wearing a giant pink-and-yellow sweatshirt, Marina wore a white crop-top and light-colored jeans, and Amber donned a White Inky Rider jacket and black shorts. Hours passed, and there were snacks and small talk between the girls and their passengers, before the Metro announced a new, strange destination.

_ <NEXT STOP: PROMISED LAND.> _

“That station isn’t on the directory,” Marina noted, looking at her laptop, which contained the list of stations on the subway line. “Still, let’s see where it takes us, but don’t get too comfortable.” Amber got ready to fight once again, her energy now restored from the tedium of the many tests she was put through.

Up on the surface, Callie, Marie, and Tako had gotten the metro’s information. It was finally back in the real world, just off of Inkopolis Station. It wasn’t a direct station, by any means, but it seemed to be where the metro was stopping anyway.

“New Squidbeak Splatoon,” Marie buzzed in over the radio. “Just off your path is where the metro is stopping - let me read you the coordinates, and you guys go investigate.” She read off the location, and the three remaining members went over to take a look. As they rounded their final corner to their destination, they found two strange things - an old telephone, and the Inkling they had lost earlier, who was covered in a strange, green-glowing goo. And they weren’t alone - there came the metro, right on the tracks.

“Aqua!” Sakura shouted.

The metro doors opened. “What the hell is going on out here?”

“Right on time,” Aqua(?) said.

“What are you talking about?!” Amber pointed her gun at what Aqua had become.

“So quick to point your weapon...you’re just as foolish as the rest of your kind. I wanted to make you an offer. I saw your test results, and Number 10,008, you’re just who I’m looking for.”

“And what are you looking for?!” The girl kept her gun steady, not taking any chances.

“The perfect one. The only one who passed all tests and survived. To pass down the wealth of human knowledge - that was the professor’s dream. But I found that all of you are too useless, weak, and self-absorbed. You wage war over minor genetic differences. You follow mindless trends. All you do is seek whatever you bandwagon you can ride, and in the end you’re all worthless.”

“I can’t tell if this is Aqua speaking or not,” Sakura noted.

“Hey! Back off!” Kaz jumped in right beside Amber, ready to fight alongside her. They were then backed up by Cierra, who was then supported by Sakura, and finally Marina, who jumped off the Metro, wielding an Octo Shot of her own.

“To think...the most advanced lifeform on this planet, teaming with Octarian trash. You’re all just as useless as I thought you were...I’ll have fun taking you down, and then using your remains to create the perfect world - the promised land.” Aqua pulled out her Hero Shot, opening fire on the squad.

“Come on, guys! We need to stop her!” Amber dodged the attack, instead landing her own shots on the possessed Inkling.

“You think you mere scraps of seafood can put in a dent in me? Think again.” Aqua threw a Splat Bomb, who narrowly avoided it. Sakura charged full-speed at the Inkling, ready to beat her into the ground. Unfortunately for her, Aqua caught her attack,and she grabbed the Inkling and flung her to the floor. Sakura simply evaporated, sending her back to the respawn pad back in Octo Valley.

“She took out Sakura without even trying!” Cierra shouted. “Stay alert!”

“Marina, you retreat! You need to stay safe!” Kaz commanded.

“Understood! Just give me one shot!” The green Octoling shouted. She tossed a Splat Bomb at Aqua, hitting her squarely and sending her back. She then promptly made it back onto the metro, safe and sound, before shutting the doors.

Cierra fired at Aqua, her shots all landing perfectly. The enemy winced a bit, but not without retaliation.

“You damned idiots...stop squirming and accept your fate.” Aqua threw tons of Splat Bombs at the fighting squad, Cierra being her primary target. Initially, the purple squid had gracefully avoided them all, but a surprise bomb got her from behind, as she joined Sakura in Octo Valley.

Amber angrily launched herself towards the enemy, tanking the shots done to her. She was able to get close, and got several shots in, but not before Aqua intercepted her. While she fought her way out, her Octo Shot didn’t quite survive, and the tall demon had yanked it from her hand and left it in pieces on the ground.

“Dammit!” She leapt back to avoid any fire.

“It’s all on you now, Amber!” Kaz tossed their own Octo Shot at her, before sacrificing themselves out of the equation.

_ I trusted in you...thank you for trusting in me. _

Time slowed to a crawl. She carefully plotted out a plan of attack, and in just seconds she had rushed Aqua totally unexpectedly. She stunned her with a Splat Bomb, fired several shots at her to nearly finish her off, and ended the fight with a clean pistol whip, right in the face.

“Gah...! You semi-sentient seafood...!” The squid fainted, the glowing ink that had covered her fading.

_ <NEXT STOP: INKOPOLIS STATION.> _

“Amber! We got it!” Marina called from the metro. “Get in here!”

The Octoling quickly picked up the passed-out Aqua, and carried her back to the subway, as the now-free Octolings made their first successful escape from Octo Valley.

But it wasn’t over for the freedom fighters.


	4. Finale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The conclusion to the trials and tribulations of the New Squidbeak Splatoon and the Octarian Freedom Fighters.

“We’re finally here...” Marina sighed as the Deep Sea Metro pulled up to Inkopolis Station after a much longer ride than initially estimated. “Now we can finally relax...”

“Uh, guys...what the hell is that? Amber pointed to a trail of green ink that led out of the station’s exit. “That looks like the stuff Aqua was covered in.” Aqua was still unconscious on the floor of the metro, the three girls looking after her.

“Woah woah woah, yeah, hold up! That looks...super sketch,” Pearl piped up.

“Amber, you go investigate that trail, I’m worried it leads to trouble. Pearlie and I will let the Octolings here know what’s going on, and we’ll meet you outside.”

The yellow Octoling nodded. Adjusting her specs, she bolted out the doors and followed the mysterious goop out of the station. She navigated through the deserted ruins outside of the metro stop and found herself standing straight in Inkopolis Square, but the usually-busy social hub of Inkling culture felt quiet and empty - not a single squid-kid roamed the streets, the Deca Tower battle lobby was closed, and all the shops had shut their doors for the day.

What Amber did find, though, was a giant statue. Very reminiscent of a...

“...HUMAN?!”

Sure enough there was what seemed to be the head and torso of an old human landmark rising out of the waters near the Square. It’s eyes appeared to be lined with the same glowing ink that our yellow Octoling hero had encountered several times before.

“Yo, Amber! Heads up!”

“There you guys are!” The girl looked up, Off the Hook’s helicopter flying above her. “Took you two long enough! You seeing this?!”  
“Yeah, and it doesn’t look good!” Marina yelled. “Come on, get in - we’re gonna get to the bottom of whatever...this is!” The idol pair let down a ladder, and soon the three had reunited, high above the city, overlooking the waters now held by this ominous statue. Upon closer inspection, one of the eyes of the statue was now housing an old-looking telephone, which was dripping in goo.

<WITH OR WITHOUT YOU, 10,008, I WILL START ANEW.> The telephone echoed. <I HAD HOPED TO HAVE PREVENTED THIS EARLIER, BUT IT SEEMS THAT THIS IS WHAT I MUST DO. IT IS TIME FOR I, COMMANDER TARTAR, TO END THIS WORLD AND FROM IT CREATE AN IDEAL NEW ONE.>

The telephone opened the statue’s mouth, a large laser-looking thing emerging, as the cannon appeared to warm up. Marina opened her laptop, instinctively trying to figure out what made this thing tick. “It’s charging it’s laser through the outside of the statue!” she exclaimed. “If we can cover that thing in ink, we should be able to stop it from charging!”

“That thing is huge,” Pearl replied. “There’s no way you’ll be able to manually ink that thing before it’s done!”

“We don’t have to,” Marina shot back. “I’ve been waiting to use these things for so long! I call them hyperbombs - they can cover huge amounts of space! Problem is, I haven’t been able to get them to remotely detonate yet, so you’d still have to shoot them before they go off...”

“I’ll do it,” Amber stated, twirling her gun.

“Are you sure?! This is super risky!”

“Someone has to, we’re not just gonna sit here and let this thing destroy the world, are we?!”

The green Octoling sighed. “I hate to say it, but you’re right. Alright then, I’ll get them ready. For backup, Pearl...let’s warm up those vocal chords.” She shot the pink squid a wink, before typing away on her laptop. “Amber, you head over to the statue, and I’ll get this whole operation ready. Keep your radio on, I’ll be sending you the locations of the bombs over them. We’ve got about three minutes, starting...now!”

The yellow Octoling launched herself to the statue’s base, as music started bumping from the helicopter, Pearl warming her voice up and Marina singing along. Amber gripped her Octo Shot tightly, knowing that this was her one chance.

<Launching five hyperbombs on its neck!> Marina called in.

“Got it!” Amber inked her path around the neck, making sure to get all five. The blast radius of the bombs was huge, but the time it took to detonate them compared to how much time she had to actually accomplish her task was too close for comfort.

<Thirty seconds in! Sending in five more on the right arm!>

Swiftly dealing with the new bombs, Marina launched more every thirty seconds. While some of them were mostly easy to hit, Inkopolis’s unlikely hero found herself dangling over the water all too often.

<Sixty seconds left!> Marina informed. <Sending in ten hyperbombs on its head. You got this, Amber!>

Ink rails surrounded the statue’s head, as if providing easy access to the ten bombs left. Amber hopped on one, making her way up and letting each of them off. She was able to completely cover the statue, and with thirty seconds to spare.

“Hey, Marina, why didn’t you call them princess-bombs?” Pearl, MC Princess, asked.

\ “Because _I_ invented them,” DJ Hyperfresh responded. “Anyways, get back to the heli, Amber!”

The tired Octoling super-jumped back to the helicopter, and sighed. “Is it over...?”

“Not yet!” Marina replied. “It’s not at full charge, but it’s gonna fire anyway!”

“Time for plan B,” Pearl said calmly. “Don’t worry, I got this.” Pearl pulled out a customized Killer Wail, as the statue prepared to fire.

“Ready...” Marina counted off. “And...now!”

Pearl took a deep breath in. It all led up to this moment - from Amber’s first meeting with Kaz, to her and Marina’s escape, to leading the Octarians to the surface - everything she had worked for for years, this was it. Freedom. At last. And Pearl finished with a battle cry.

“BOO-YAHHHHHH!!”

Massive soundwaves launched themselves toward the firing statue. The statue’s laser intercepting Pearl’s, the two fought back and forth. Marina and Pearl seemed on edge, but Amber had managed to keep herself calm.

_ We win. _

The two forces kept at it, each overpowering the other.

_ We worked too hard for this, just to let it go to waste. _

The fight continued, neither side letting up.

_ Thank you for everything. _

The death-rays settled, as everyone was blinded by a flash of light. When their eyes could finally process what they had seen, the statue and telephone were nowhere to be found, the only remnants being the husks of some hyperbombs floating in the ocean.

“It’s over,” Amber sighed.

“Yes, it is...” Marina gave her two companions a hug. “Let’s land this sucker, and check in with the New Squidbeak.”

The helicopter was landed right by Off the Hook’s HQ, as the three made their way to Octo Valley, where Callie and Marie were tending to the injured Inklings, who hadn’t quite recovered from their previous fight.

“How’s it goin’?” Pearl asked.

“Fine,” Callie replied, her voice quiet.

“Tako’s out escorting the Octolings back up here. We’re trying to get these guys back to health, they’re still out cold.” Marie looked at the passed-out Inklings, all three of which were wrapped up in thick layers of blankets.

“I can’t believe it’s all over,” Marina noted. “Thanks for the help, guys. It really means a lot.” Marina smiled, giving Callie and Marie a thumbs-up.

“Thank these three,” Callie corrected her. “They’re the ones who risked themselves for it, not us. We just said things over a radio.”

“What happened to Aqua, anyway?” Amber bent down over Kaz, giving her friend a pat on the head and tucking him in to the blankets.

“She just sorta disappeared,” Marie responded. “Authority’s on the lookout for her, though. Turns out she has quite the record...”

“We probably should have done background checks,” Callie giggled.

“If I see that damn squid again, she’s dead meat...!”

“Pearlie, please calm down...” Marina tried to console the gremlin before she got too out of hand.

Amber looked confused, but rolled with it. “We should get these three to a hospital. We’re all freaking tired, and we should take the time to rest. It’s been a long day, to say the least...”

“Amen to that, sister,” Callie sighed. “I’ll get these three on an ambulance stat.”

Marie nodded. “You guys go relax, take your mind off things. I’m gonna stay back to help.”\

“Thank you,” Amber smiled. She super-jumped away, Pearl and Marina following.

A few days had passed since the events of what was now being called the Deep Sea Rising. The New Squidbeak Splatoon had recovered from their knockout, and Inkopolis was once again booming with Inklings, and for the first time, Octolings, which were now making their way to the surface in numbers. As it always did, Inkopolis News began every two hours, and the sounds filled the square.

“Y’all know what time it is!” A short, pink squid exclaimed.

“It’s Inkopolis News, comin’ at you live from Inkopolis Square!” announced a tall, green Octoling.

“Let’s take a look at the Regular Battle sta--” a shorter, yellow Octoling stated, before getting cut off.

\ “Hold up!” Pearl shouted. “Marina, that single drops today, doesn’t it?”

“Yes it does!” She cheerily replied. “Why don’t we lay down a taste?” Soon, a song radiated through the town. “Fly Octo Fly, featuring Amber, launches in just five hours, and here it is! Before we leave you with this, remember! Don’t get cooked...”

The three echoed in unison. “Stay off the hook!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading all this way! This was a small side project I wrote for fun, and is surprisingly the first work I've actually finished. Ever. It's kinda sad, actually...anyways, I really hope you enjoyed! This most certainly won't be the last time you've seen these characters (and it probably wasn't the first, either), so stay tuned! Thank you to LPSvsS for her characters, and thank YOU for reading!


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